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Red Hat Openshift Update Service EUVDEUVD-2025-209304

| CVE-2025-57854 MEDIUM
Incorrect Default Permissions (CWE-276)
2026-04-08 redhat
6.4
CVSS 3.1 · Vendor: redhat
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Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A01:2025 - Broken Access Control
ASVS 5.0
V13 - Configuration Default permission hardening
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Privilege Escalation

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Impact

CVSS score of 6.4 reflects moderate severity with specific contextual constraints: the CVSS vector (AV:L/AC:H/PR:H) indicates local attack vector, high complexity, and high privilege requirements, making opportunistic exploitation unlikely in typical deployments. However, the risk assessment must account for container deployment contexts where multiple pods or processes may execute with varying privilege levels within the same container namespace. The high complexity (AC:H) and requirement for high privileges (PR:H) suggest this is not a trivial exploit path in standard hardened container environments. EPSS data and CISA KEV status were not provided, so exploitation likelihood in the wild cannot be confirmed; the absence of public exploit code and active exploitation reports suggests this remains a low-profile vulnerability. Risk is primarily relevant to organizations running affected OSUS versions in multi-tenant or mixed-privilege container environments where internal lateral movement is a concern.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

An attacker with legitimate access to execute commands within an affected OSUS container (for example, as a limited service account or through a separate vulnerability in a containerized application) discovers they hold membership in the root group. The attacker writes a new entry to the group-writable /etc/passwd file, creating a user with UID 0 and spawning a shell with root privileges, gaining full control of the container and potentially pivoting to the host system. The high complexity requirement (AC:H) may require specific container configuration, namespace setup, or prior knowledge of group assignments, limiting casual exploitation.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Why: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9).
No patch listed yet 0.0% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAIv1 – Apr 08, 2026

Privilege escalation in OpenShift Update Service (OSUS) container images allows local attackers with high privileges to gain root access by modifying the group-writable /etc/passwd file created during build time. An attacker executing commands within an affected container can leverage root group membership to inject a new user with UID 0, achieving full container root privileges. No public exploit code or active exploitation has been identified at the time of analysis.

RemediationAI

Apply the vendor-released patch from Red Hat for OpenShift Update Service; consult https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2025-57854 for the specific patched version applicable to your deployment. The primary fix involves rebuilding affected OSUS container images with proper /etc/passwd file permissions (non-group-writable, typically 0644 or 0444). As an immediate workaround in container deployments, restrict group membership and ensure containers run with minimal privilege levels (non-root user, dropped capabilities) and enforce read-only root filesystems where feasible. Verify that container build processes enforce restrictive default file permissions and implement image scanning to detect group-writable critical system files in existing images.

Affects your stack

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Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

This vulnerability exploits improper file permission configuration at container build time, rooted in CWE-276 (Incorrect Default Permissions). The /etc/passwd file, typically a critical system authentication database, was created with group-writable permissions during the OSUS image build process. In Linux containers, membership in the root group (GID 0) combined with group-write access to /etc/passwd enables arbitrary modification of user records without requiring root UID ownership. An attacker can append a new entry with UID 0 to escalate from their current privilege level to full root access, effectively breaking container isolation boundaries. The vulnerability affects Red Hat OpenShift Update Service (cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_openshift_update_service:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*) across affected versions.

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Severity by source

Vendor (redhat) PRIMARY 6.4 MEDIUM
AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Red Hat 6.4 MEDIUM

Primary rating from Vendor (redhat).

CVSS VectorVendor: redhat

Attack Vector
Local
Attack Complexity
High
Privileges Required
High
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

DescriptionCVE.org

A container privilege escalation flaw was found in certain OpenShift Update Service (OSUS) images. This issue stems from the /etc/passwd file being created with group-writable permissions during build time. In certain conditions, an attacker who can execute commands within an affected container, even as a non-root user, may be able to leverage their membership in the root group to modify the /etc/passwd file. This could allow the attacker to add a new user with any arbitrary UID, including UID 0, leading to full root privileges within the container.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.0%
Top 100% exploitable
Data Quality
7 sources
Confidence: High
EUVD NVD CVE.org EPSS Vulnrichment Vendor VulDB

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity MEDIUM
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.0%
Patch available No
Active threat No
Deciding rule
MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Defer
Exploitation
None
System Exposure· derived
Small
Automatable
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium
Technical Impact
Total

Priority Score

32
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: 0
CVSS: +32
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted.

Affected Products (CPE)CVE.org

cpe:2.3:a:red_hat:red_hat_openshift_update_service:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

Vendor StatusVendor

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